Once again, the Wolves failed to secure that elusive first away win of the season.
The visit to a Wigton side, struggling close to the bottom of the table and without a home win, had seemed to provide the best opportunity so far for success on the road.
By the end though, the Wolves had just been unable to adapt their preferred style of game sufficiently for the conditions.
Wigton, meanwhile, played the conditions better particularly in the second half and deserved their win.
A cold gale force wind was blowing straight down the Wigton ground and the Wolves had to play into the teeth of the gale in the first half.
Their play was sensible as they won sufficient possession from scrum and lineout to drive their way upfield with straight running from forwards and backs alike.
On the occasions when the home side did threaten, the Wolves got back into defence to soon recover the ball and start the process again.
After 20 minutes though, Wigton won a scrum on half way and, as they set off from the base of the scrum on their right, they found the Wolves back row AWOL.
Out numbered, there wasn’t much the defenders could do as crisp passing and handling by the home side released their scrum half, Fergus Ledingham, with a clear run for the opening score under the posts.
A few minutes later, full back Greg Smith landed a penalty to put Wigton ten points clear.
The Wolves responded well, taking the ball at the restart, and ending the half well in Wigton territory.
Bob MacCallum had a go at a penalty from in front of the posts in the Wigton 22 only to see his decently struck effort blown away by the wind.
General opinion at half-time was that it had been more than a 10-point gale and that the Wolves were still in the encounter.
But it soon went wrong.
The Wigton forwards took the ball cleanly at the start of the second half and for 15 minutes the Wolves couldn’t get their hands on it except for once when MacCallum’s kick from his own half of the field ended up behind the dead ball line.
A fracas between several players broke out and led to the Yorkshire referee, Will Halford, even handedly sending Wilmslow’s James Keys and Wigton’s Callum Studholme to the bin.
But Wigton were back in possession again and a muddle on the Wilmslow line led to a try by their centre Richard Moffatt, converted by Smith.
Now 17 points in arrears away from home as the final quarter approached, it was beginning to look mission improbable for Wilmslow.
Coach Giles Heagerty rang the changes, bringing on Chris Findlow and Lewis McKay in the front row for Sam Rodman and Jack Walmsley. Mike Black moved into the back row in place of Dan Partington and Chris Lee went into the centre.
For 15 minutes or so, the Wolves did manage to test the Wigton defence.
The pack though just didn’t possess the power to drive and barge over the line and any attempt to put width on the ball in the backs was doomed to disaster.
The Wolves just didn’t have the ideas and playmakers to break down the stubborn Wigton defence despite several opportunities.
Eventually though, with just seven minutes left, scrum half Andy Walker touched down from the base of a pile up on the Wigton line but it was too late.
In the final minutes the Wolves were either unable to put the ball into the field position they needed to or just decided not to.
Trying to run their way out of their half though wasn’t the answer as they desperately passed and threw the ball around with the inevitable consequences. It was all so disappointing.
Elsewhere, both the Vikings and Developmentals kept up their league challenges with wins against Kendal and Trafford MV respectively.
The Vikings remain in second place in USL 1 while the Developmentals move to the top of USL4S.
There was also a win for the Ravens at Lymm.
